Infinitely Pointless

In my 3D champs post, I mentioned something that caught my eye whilst looking at the trade stands that were there. That item was a new bow!

Since I started archery in November last year, I’ve been shooting and old Howatt Archery Coronado. It’s a one piece wooden recurve, 32lbs at 28″. It’s a really nice, smooth bow and I love shooting it. For those of you that know me, you’ll know that I’m not the smallest guy in the world and my shoulders have become accustomed to the weight of this bow very quickly. I was stuggling to keep any back tension on the string while at full draw.

I’d been thinking about a new bow for a while and ever since I first got involved in archery I’d always like the look of the Martin Archery Dreamcatcher. I hadn’t shot one up to this point so I didn’t know if the bow would suit me or not.

When I walked into Carol Edwards tent at the 3Ds there were a couple of Dreamcatchers sat on a bow rack. As luck would have it  there was a right handed one at 40lbs, just the weight I was looking for! The price was also very good, much less than I’d see elsewhere on the internet. I decided to go back to the car and get kitted up so I could give the bow a try.

I took it out to the practice butts with my own arrows and tried at a target that was about 15 yards away. The first 6 arrows were all inside the kill zone, although it was quite a big zone on this particular target, but still pretty impressive considering this was the first time I’d shot from a shelf and the arrows weren’t really matched to the bow. The riser also had a really nice feel in the hand. All this combined lead me to the decision that this bow was for me.

The 3D Champs this year were held at Osmaston Park near Ashbourne in Derbyshire. Fairly close to home for me and Kay so we decided to drive home in the evening and not camp over.

I was a bit more prepared for the 3Ds after doing the Scottish Champs earlier in the year, still wasn’t entirely sure what to expect though as there are 3 courses at the 3Ds. As expected, me and Kay wouldn’t be shooting together for this one…not even close…completely different courses. We arrived just after 8am on Saturday morning and got parked fairly close to the admin area. We wandered down to get booked in and grab some food before the queues became any longer. The rest of Artemis turned up while we were booking in and I took delivery of my artemis T-Shirt and fleece. Thankfully the weather was warm enough not to require a fleece and I decided to head out in my new orange t-shirt.

Day 1

After the usual morning briefing, we divided up into the different couse groups and headed out onto the courses. I was on the A course and Kay would be on the C course. The A course was walked out first, and there was a very good reason for this….A course was bloody miles away!

After arriving at the peg we didn’t have too long to wait before things got underway, mainly due to the long walk out we had compared to everyone else. The woodland was really nice and had a remarkable relaxed feel to it, despite the fact that there was no smoking allowed. The targets, while not long distances were remarkably well placed which made them very deceptive. I started out fairly well and did a lot better than I expected, although all I had to go on as far as a champs course was concerned was Scotland. The only downside to the A course was the amount of pigs as targets. Towards the end of the day things were getting a little boring and repetitive.

At the end of the day I finished with a score of 484 and only 2 blanks. Compared tomy first day in Scotland, this was an excellent performance and I was very happy with it. To find out how I compared with everyone else would have to wait till the next morning.

After we packed up we were invited for a meal with the rest of the Artemis Archers, the pub we stopped at was called the Rose and Crown and is located on the A52 in a litlle village called Brailsford. I wasn’t driving, so I enjoyed a few beers with my meal while dissecting the course and the days performance.

Day 2

We arrived nice and early for the second day. I was full of confidence, although still a little nervous and unsure of how I’d done the day before. We made our way down to the admin area to book in and check out the standings after day 1. It wasn’t until I tried to find my name on the results sheet that I realised how many people were shooting in my class. I normlly look for my name quite close to the bottom of the list and hope I’m not at the bottom. I was pleasantly surprised. while I still wasn’t in the top 10, and didn’t expect to be. I wasn’t in the bottom 10 either! Out of a total of 87 people shooting my style I was 65th. A dramatic improvement over the Scottish Champs.

As always, I had a look at the result to see how Kay had done. I never know whether or not to do this as she doesn’t really like to know how she’s doing. I was pleased to find her name at the top of the list in first place in her class. Now I just had to figure out if I should tell her or not. After several questions about how she’d done and if she’d done ok I decided to tell her and as usual she didn’t believe me! It was just as well I decided to tell her really, as everyone that she spoke to or that knew her were congratulating her, so she’d have found out in the end anyways.

Feeling a lot happier after seeing the result, we went for a wander around some of the trade stands that were there and I saw something that caught my eye. More about that in a later post!

For the second day, I would be shooting the B course and Kay would be shooting the A course that I’d shot the previous day. The B course was a lot closer than the A course so we had a lot shorter walk out which suited me fine! I was a little more prepared for this second day and a lot less nervous!

The group I was in on the second day wasn’t as good as Day 1. We also had 6 people on the peg which seemed a little odd to me as it’s usually 5 and 4 of them seemed to know each other and had shot together the previous day. They also decided to pick the shooting order on the first peg and stick to it all day. Something else I’m not fond of, especially as I was shooting last all day!

The B Course was slightly better than the A course, the targets were more varied and there were some longer distance shots. My only gripe would be the catering. Drinks and food were expensive and they ran out of water mid-afternoon. I performed about the same as day one. My scores had been pretty consistent over the 40 targets, averaging about 240 per 20 targets. I ended the second day with a score of 474, dropping only 10 points from day 1 on what I would consider a harder course. I await the full results to find out where I finished in relation to everyone else and to see if I kept my place overall.

Kay was a different story, although there was a slight scoring mix up and she didn’t figure in the results anywhere the first time they were announced. She had actually won her class.

I like the Castle Bowmen shoots, they have a really nice wood. The ground is mainly flat but they still manage to create a challenging and enjoyable course. We weren’t even sure we were booked on to this shoot and couldn’t get hold of anyone to confirm it, but we decided to make the journey anyway. There are always cancellations on the day of the shoot and we figured if we were there then we get a spot. Especially as the weather wasn’t particulary good and the sky threatened rain.

When we arrived and were walking through the parking area to book in, a lot of people were referring to me as thingie. I just put this down to people knowing who I am but not necessarily my name. When we went to book in, it became clearer. When Kay booked us on the shoot, she didn’t give names as most people know who Kay is. I had been booked in as Thingie. I guess Rachel doesn’t know my name either.

As we walked out in the morning it was raining which always makes the choice of clothing interesting. In the wood itself it isn’t too bad, the trees provide a good bit of shelter but out in the open it was raining enough to soak you quickly. This didn’t last though and the rain cleared up after an hour or so and the rest of the day was relatively dry.

I had no particular tagets for the shoot. I really just wanted to get out and have a good day. I shot ok in the morning, nothing spectacular but ok. I don’t know what happened in the afternoon but it seemed like I couldn’t miss anything. Not entirely true as I did miss one target but that’s how it felt. I scored 224 from the first 20 targets and on the second half I scored 302! This gave me a total for the day of 526 and 3 blanks. A personal best for me and the first time I broke 500. To make it even better, I actually managed to beat Kay for the first time! To be fair though, she was in a lot of pain with her back and not shooting particularly well. Bring on the 3Ds!

I really should write these things after the shoot rather than a couple of weeks later, as is the case with this entry!

I’m not particularly fond of the Centaura shoots, the wood is nice enough but the course is always pretty much the same with the same type of shots in the same places each time. Ok, the target might change and the distance will vary a little but it always feels to me like its the second time round the course.

Having said that, I haven’t done particularly well at Centaura and I’m told it’s a tough course. The last time I shot this course was back in December, although it was a charity shoot not an open competition. My score then was 288 (although it was only my second field shoot) so my target for today was 350.

I finished the course with 380 and only 6 blanks. After recent weeks I was hoping to keep my blanks under 5, but on this course 6 is still not too bad. Kay shot particularly well and managed to retain the Ladies AFB Trophy for another year. Needn’t have bothered taking it back there really but at least they had something to present her with

After my much improved performance last week at Wolverine I was looking forward to this shoot, although part of me was worried I might have a massive comedown. Even with that in the back of my mind I was looking forward to a good days shooting as the weather forcast was good.

I’d been told how good this wood was, Kay says that Lyme Valley is her favourite shoot but I haven’t been to this club before so I wasn’t sure what to expect. I wasn’t diappointed. As the name suggests, the couse is set out in a valley which gives the course layer plenty of scope to test the archer. There were a good selection of shots, fully utilizing the terrain available and giving me some valuable practice shooting both up and downhill.

My fears of having a massive comedown were unfounded. I was relaxed all day, partly due to having a good group but partly because I’m getting more used to shooting. I actually managed to shoot better than I did at Wolverine, I came off the couse with a score of 458 from 36 targets. I made some good shots and I also made some mistakes and missed some targets I really should be hitting now. My best shot was probably my last shot of the day, a standing bear at what I think was about 50 yards which I hit first arrow.

All in all, I had a good day.

Fresh back from Scotland and after a short week at work, we were back out and shooting again. This time at Wolverine, down near Stoke-On-Trent. The drive down is about 90 minutes from here so we needed an early start. As it turned out I was up and awake stupidly early so we got an earlier start than expected. A good thing really as I was in need of a McDonalds breakfast

The weather started out a bit grey, but by the time we arrive the sun was out and the temperature was starting to go up which led to the usual confusion as to what gear to wear. As usual I made the wrong decision and by lunchtime I was sweating my bollocks off.

Had a good day, the wood was nice and the weather was great. I had my best day so far and ended up with a score of 468 and only 5 blanks. Still overshadowed by Kay’s performance of 578 and only two blanks…but then again she’s been doing this a lot longer.

Overall, a good day out and a good result. Even managed to hit Kong, admittedly not from the first peg which was at 83 yards but I did get him 3rd arrow that was about 60 yards. I’m just hoping I have as good a day next Sunday when we go to Lyme Valley.

Quote of the day has to go to Steve Hall from the 100 yard club who said “How the fuck do you blank a 9 foot gorilla!”

As an aside, I did see the new bow I want. Well, not actually THE bow but one very much like the one I want. Looks good and sounds even better

After my performance in Scotland, I decided more practice was needed. With that in mind I went shopping around the internet for a boss. For those of you who are not familiar with archery terminology, a boss is a target usually made of compressed foam or straw that you pin target faces to.

After looking around the internet at the archery equipment suppliers, the cheapest foam bosses I found were from Merlin in Loughborough. They come in 3 sizes, 60cm, 90cm and 130cm. I opted for the 90cm as our garden is fairly well sized. We also picked up a fair few paper faces of all the animals we hate on the courses for practice targets.

Although I only intended picking up the boss and some faces while we were there, as usually happens you end up picking up a lot of other stuff. I got a nice new bracer which is a bit longer than my old one and seems to fit better and we also got a few packs of fletchings. Just remains to be seen now if I actually do more practicing in the week and if I do, does it make me any better at the weekends!

Haven’t really had time to put anything here since we got back from Scotland, things have been hectic. Now I’ve got a bit of time, I figured I’d write something.

We drove up to Castle Douglas on Friday morning, albeit later than we intended to set off. Blame that one on me and my need for a McDonalds breakfast! We had a fairly steady drive up, no real traffic to speak of except the bint in the Toyota Corola on the A64 that kept clogging up the outside lane. We stopped once on the way, just before Gretna,  I couldn’t make the whole trip without a smoke.

We stayed the weekend at the Old Exchange along with 3 other families from Artemis Archers. Had a great time, plenty of beer and good company in the evenings. The Kings Norton archers came over on Saturday night for a few beers and much humour. The accommodation was first rate, much better than a Travelodge or premier inn. It was more like an apartment than a hotel, just a shame that I forgot to take any photos but the ones on the old exchange website are good enough.

The two courses at the competition were excellent, although I personally found the A course slightly easier than the B course. I didn’t score as much as I’d hoped for, but in all fairness I couldn’t really have done any better than I did. Part of this was down to the fact I couldn’t seem to settle in with the group we had on Saturday, but a lot of this could have been in my head or down to my nerves as this was my first time at a champs competition.

As we were walking down to book in for the Sunday, my only hope was that I wasn’t last in my class. After picking up the score cards for Sunday I checked the previous days scores to see how we’d done. Sure enough, there I was at the top of the list. Not a good thing, in case you were wondering, the scores were in reverse order. At least I had a new goal for Sunday….shoot better and get myself off the bottom of the list!

I found the Sunday course somewhat easier, and the group was much more lively which helped me settle. I still didn’t score as well as I’d hoped, but I did really enjoy the day and had a goog laugh! Fortunately, I did shoot well enough to get out from last place. I finished next to last, but 48 points up on last place.

I’m now looking forward to the 3Ds in May and hopefully finishing a bit higher up the board.

A few photos from the weekend in Scotland are available in the photo gallery

The day started out promising enough, I shot really well for the first 13 targets. Then for whatever reason, it all went a bit Pete Tong. I missed 13 targets in the afternoon, with 5 straight blanks in the last 6 targets…although some of them were at pretty long distances.

Distance is where I need most practice now I think. The closer stuff I’m managing to hit most of the time but anything over about 30 yards I’m struggling with.

After a discussion with Kay in the car on the way home, I might try shooting a different bow next week before the Scottish Champs and see how that goes. She thinks that maybe I’ve outgrown the bow I’m shooting now, she say’s it looks almost as if it’s too small for me. Whatever it is, I need to try something. Today was really demoralising for me, this is my worst score to date and also the highest number of blanks I’ve had in any 36 target shoot. The course was really tough and I wasn’t the only one to have a bad day, so I shouldn’t be too hard on myself.

There were some upsides to today, I was beating Kay for the first 13 targets. I didn’t loose/break any arrows and I didn’t end on a blank

Crusader Bowmen in Annesley next Sunday, the last open shoot before the Scottish Champs. I’ll be hoping to see some improvement next week.

So I’m awake at 6:30am on Sunday morning. This is in part because we had to be up early this morning and with the clocks going forward, I wasn’t sure if my alarm would go off at the right time but it’s mainly thank to the two idiot kids that decided to shout and bounce of our hedge at 3:30 this morning.
There is something nice about being up at this time though. I’ve just been out for a cigarette and although it’s cold, the sun is just coming up and the birds are all singing.
We’re off to Market Rasen this morning for the Blacksheep NFAS shoot. Weather forcsst is good an it should be a nice day. I have all the best intentions of enjoying myself today regardless of how I shoot…I’ll let you know how that works out!

Right, off to wake up Kay and grab a shower.